Apparatus for treating ores or the like



Oct, 27, 1925. 1,558,965

6. H. CLEVENGER v APPARATUS FOR TREATING ORES OR THE LIKE Filed Deb. 27, 1920 Gummy Patented Oct. 27, 1925.

UNITED s ATes PATENT. OFFICE.

GALEN H. CLEVENGER, OI BQSTON IMASSAGIHI'CI'SETTS, ASSIGNOR TO RESEARCH COR- PORATION, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

APPARATUS FOR TREATING ORES OR THE LIKE.

Application filed December 27, 19cc. Serial No. 433,355.

To all whom it may concern: I Be it known that I, GALEN H. CLEVENGER, a citizen. of the United States, residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in A paratus for Treating Ores or the Like, of w ich the fol lowing is a specification.

The present invention relates to apparatus for the heat-treatment of ores or other materials and more particularly to-furnaces for continuously treating ores under precisely regulated conditions of temperature, reduction, oxidation, etc.

In its more specific aspect'the invention is intended as an improvement upon the typeof furnace described in and constituting the subject matter of my application Serial No. 289,061, filed Apr. '10,- 1919.

I am fully aware, however, that it is of broader application.

It is the general object of the invention to bring about more perfect combustion of the combustible gases and greater fuel economy in furnaces or-kilns of the type inconveyor 11, 12 being the flue and 13 the stack.

At the other end the material passes into a stationary chamber 5 from the lower end of which it is discharged into a sump 6.

While the furnace illustrated includes three zones viz, a preheating zone 17, a re ducing zone 18 and a cooling zone 18 and is similar to this extent to the furnace de- 22 and may be rotated by, means of a circular rack 23, 'a pinion 24 and gearing 25.

The characteristic feature of. the arrangement so far described is the combustion chamber 19 andthe relationship of the sections 17 and 18 determined thereby.

The chamber 19 is subdivided into two compartments by the checker-work wall 26.

The compartment 26 may be appropriately called amixing chamber while the chamber 26 is essentially a combustion chamber proper, the former having air inlets 33 and a door 34.

The operative significance of the arrangement is as follows:

A suitable reducing gas, such as producer gas is introduced through pipe 28 and flows upward through the kiln, while the ore to be treated moves in opposite'direction.

Air is supplied through pipe 29 and 80 to the jets 31 and the rate of flow to the separate jets may be regulated by means of valves 32. This feature is, for purposes of illustration, like that described in the said.

application. 7

The reducing gas, to which the heat of the material treated in the reaction zone has been to a greater or less extent transferred in the cooling zone, undergoes combustion in the reaction zone, the rate of combustion being controlled by the valved air jets.

The matter of prime importance in the reduction zone is the temperature. To obtain the best results, the temperatures in the different parts of the reaction zone must have definite values. While these temperatures can be controlled, it is not possible to regulate the flow of the reducing gas so as to leave no combustible residuum at the junction of the reaction zone and the preheating zone. In practice, therefore, the gases passing through the preheating zone "ordinarily contain an amount of combustible ases and the loss of heat energy re resent thereby is considerable during a rnace campaign ,or during the life of the furnace.

In order to recover these values, I have mter osed between the reaction chamber and t e preheating chamber the combustion chamber]. 19.

"The gases composed of products of combustion and unburnt gases pass into the compartment 26 and mingle with additional air drawn into the compartment through compartment 26 The hot flame and highly heated gases then pass on through the preheating zone imparting their-heat to the incoming charge.

The furnace is so operated that the checkor work is at all times at a high temperature, i. e., well above the kindling point of the gaseous mixture, thereby maintaining and accelerating combustion. The checker work also performs the function of completing the mixing of gas and-air.

By completely burning in this manner the incompletely burnt gases coming from the reaction chamber it is possible to control the temperatures in the reaction chamber and to utilize all fuel values in the preheating chamber Without producing heat zones detrimental to the charge.

In the treatment of many ores and materials it is hi hly objectionable to overheat the charge in the preheating zone. By means of the arrangement described the zone of complete combustion is localized and does not injuriously react upon the incoming charge, but at the same time the heat of combustion is usefully transferred thereto.

The form of the combustion chamber, while preferably constructed as described, may of course be modified in various ways to suit particular conditions.

Also the design of the preheating unit 17 of the furnace may be modified to vary the rate of movement of the incoming charge as also to determine the quantity of the material therein to adapt it to the heat conditions in the combustion chamber.

I claim:

1. A furnace of the type described having a reaction. unit disposed in a substantially horizontal plane, a preheating unit disposed at a higher level, a material transfer connection between the two units, means for passing a charge successively through the preheating unit and the reaction unit, means or passing a combustible gas in opposite direction through the reaction unit, means for progressively burning said gas in the reaction unit, a combustion chamber interrseaeee connecting the two units including means for eflecting combustion of unburnt gases coming from the reaction unit and means operative to cause movement of a charge successively through the preheating unit and the reaction unit.

2. A furnace of the type described having two revolubly mounted horizontal units, a combustion chamber interconnecting the said units and a material transfer connection between the units.

3. A furnace of the type described having two revolubly mounted horizontal units, one disposed at a higher level than the other, a combustion chamber interconnecting the said units and means for transferring material from the higher to the lower unit.

4:. In a furnace of the type described, the combination of a reaction unit, a preheating unit, means for passing a charge successively through the preheating unit and the reaction unit, means for passing a gas in opposite direction through the reaction unit, means for progressively burning said gas in the reaction unit, means between the reaction unit and the preheating unit for efi'ecting combustion of unburnt gases coming from the reaction chamber and means for supplying heat to the preheating unit independently of the reactlon unit.

5. In a furnace of the type described, the combination of a revolubly mounted reaction unit, a revolubly mounted preheating unit disposed at a higher level, a material transfer-connection between the two units, means for passing a gas in counter-current relation to the flow of the charge, means for progressively burning the gas in the reaction unit, a combustion chamber between the reaction unit and the preheating unit for effecting combustion of unburnt gases coming from the reaction chamber and separate means cooperating with the combustion chamber for supplying heat to the preheating zone independently of the reaction unit.

In testimony whereof, I affix my signature.

GALEN H. GLEVENGER. 

